Incident Overview

Description
An Eclipse EA500, N120EA, sustained substantial damage during a runway overrun while landing at Danbury Municipal Airport (DXR), Connecticut, USA. The pilot and two passengers sustained minor injuries. The flight originated from Wittman Regional Airport (OSH), Wisconsin, USA, about 12:20. According to the pilot, the approach to runway 26 “required a steeper than normal approach,” because of trees near the runway. The airplane touched down near the displaced threshold and he applied the brakes to decelerate; however, the “first pedal push was soft,” which was “not unusual.” Then, he continued “pumping the brakes” and considered a go-around; however, the remaining runway was too short. The pilot continued to “pump” the brakes, about six times; however, he did not think the brakes were operating. The airplane continued off the end of the runway, impacted a berm, and came to rest upright approximately 200 feet beyond the end of the runway. During the accident sequence, the right main landing gear punctured the underside of the right wing, which resulted in substantial damage. In addition, the nose landing gear separated from the airplane. According to data downloaded from the airplanes diagnostic storage unit (DSU), the airplane touched down 1,280 ft beyond the runway threshold, which resulted in 2,408 ft of runway remaining (the runway had a displaced threshold of 737 ft) and that it traveled 2,600 ft before coming to rest about 200 ft past the runway. Comparing DSU data from previous downloaded flights revealed that the airplanes calculated deceleration rate during the accident landing was indicative of braking performance as well as or better than the previous landings. Estimated landing distance calculations revealed that the airplane required about 3,063 ft when crossing the threshold at 50 ft above ground level. However, the airplane touched down with only 2,408 ft of remaining runway, which resulted in the runway overrun. Probable Cause: The pilot’s failure to attain the proper touchdown point, which resulted in a runway overrun.
Primary Cause
Pilot’s failure to attain the proper touchdown point, leading to a runway overrun.Pilot’s failure to attain the proper touchdown point, leading to a runway overrun.Share on: